Vermicomposting is composting with the help of special worms. But why is composting with worms such a good idea? Why should we choose vermicomposting rather than a different type of composting system?
For Quick & Successful Compost Creation
Setting up a wormery and enlisting wriggling helpers to aid in composting can speed up the process of compost creation when compared to other cold composting systems. With worms to eat their way through and aerate the material, it will break down more quickly than it will do in a regular compost heap or bin.
For an Amazing Soil Amender
The worms will process the material through their bodies, passing out ‘worm castings’ which enrich and improve the finished compost. These ‘worm castings’ will not only improve the finished compost you can create. They are also great for improving the soil in your garden. Both in their texture and their nutrient content, worm castings are an excellent soil amender.
To Gain a Liquid Fertilizer for Your Plants
Vermicomposting containers can be made in a range of different ways. But good examples of wormeries have some means to drain off excess liquid from the materials as they decompose within. The liquid you drain from your wormery will be an additional yield from your vermicomposting system.
The nutrient rich brew can be watered down (3 parts water to 1 part of this liquid) to make a DIY general purpose liquid fertilizer for your plants. You can use this form of ‘compost tea’ to give your plants a boost.
To Make The Most of Small Spaces
Wormeries come in many shapes and sizes. Vermicomposting systems can be set up to suit even the smallest of spaces. Even if you do not have a garden at all, vermicomposting could be implemented inside your home. A small wormery can quite happily be placed within a cupboard under your kitchen sink or in a utility space in your home, which means that this is a composting system you could employ even in an inner-city apartment.
By combining small-scale vermicomposting with bokashi fermentation, you can create a small space way to deal with an even greater variety of household food waste.
To Feed Fish or Poultry as Well as Plants
One final thing that distinguishes vermicomposting when it is compared to other forms of composting is that you will be breeding worms as well as making compost. Over time, the worm population in a well-kept wormery will expand. The worm population in your wormery should roughly double in around 3 months. And excess worms can be used in a range of different ways around your property.
Once interesting use for the Eisenia foetida or Eisenia hortensis worms bred in your vermicomposting system is as food for other garden system creatures. For example, you can feed worms to certain fish in aquaponics systems, or feed worms as a supplemental protein source to backyard chickens.
Cultivating worms can be an interesting way to implement a number of closed loop food producing systems where you live. So, if you are trying to live more sustainably, this is one more reason to start vermicomposting right now.
EWSP Consultancy 